For a time in the military I thought it was fear that was keeping me from advancing to the peak of the military ranks. Was I ready for more responsibility beyond leading troops? Would I fail at the task?

No, it wasn’t that. I enjoyed helping shape some of America’s best and brightest in the ways of military tactics and resupply. So what was it? What kept me in a proverbial cocoon? Safe from the outside world, but longing to start anew.

Complacency. That’s right. Someone who was so used to continually advancing up the ranks got comfortable. Too comfortable in a safe position. A safe job and paycheck. Scared to fail.

But that was the wrong way to think about things. See, failure honestly is all psychological. Failing is going to happen in life. We should fail and learn from the mistakes. But we can’t call ourselves a failure and stay that way.

We are more worried about how we will be perceived if we fail. And that’s understandable, but not acceptable. How I look right now is not what I would be worried about. Failing is inevitable, but complacency is not.

I would be more worried about being in the same spot next year having not made any traction on my goals. That I haven’t achieved something and moved on to the next thing on my list.

See complacency will do that to you. It will tell you that you are fine exactly where you are. That we are only taking a break to figure out our next move. We have accomplished a lot and we are just waiting for others to catch up.

Try again. That excuse is not going to work. Because complacency will rob you of your creativity. You livelihood. No, you need to look complacent behaviors in the face and tell them that they are not welcome.

See we have talked about this before on this blog. Brainstorming ideas. Coming up with priorities and then setting clear goals. But a lot of times looking at this list can bring that supposed emotion of fear again. And that’s ok.

But we are not going to be complacent. Remember when I talked about the Lee Method? Well, it doesn’t only apply to work. Take your top six goals and apply that method to your life goals. Write me back and let me know if it worked for you, too. I have no doubt that it will if you are honest with yourself.

We are going to break the curse, though. We are not going to be here in the same spot next year. We will have moved on to a new position or job. We will have started our own side business or became an entrepreneur. The possibilities are endless.

But your life is not. We have to start living like we have only one life. Not another one to come back to and finish everything we didn’t the first time. Live this one.

What is your why? Knowing why you want to succeed will make you channel that energy that you feel and use it to get started again.

So no more talking. Let’s work on doing. No more complacency. Let’s work on accomplishing our dreams.

And yes, I snapped out of it. I finally got the job I wanted, started this blog and am now retiring. My focus is this blog and helping all of you.

Like this:

I have failed. So much that at one point in time it affected my attitude towards life. I have doubted myself many times. I failed at the first blog last year. I had no idea what I was doing. Failed to progress through the ranks because I made the mistake of comparing myself to others. Continue reading “Failures and Successes”→

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So what is Living the Dream?

Living the Dream came from a two decade old wish to help people become better and lead extraordinary lives. My passion is helping others realize their fullest potential. No gimmicks. Just honest words and truth telling.